Our favorite doctor is back with his weekly Takimag column covering topics ranging from the obnoxious selfie to dealing with telemarketers, and much else in between.
But posing and posturing have become a mass phenomenon, the tattooing of our time. Of nothing is this more true than contemporary Woke morality. Whereas not long ago young people of the middle classes sought to express their sympathy for the lower and supposedly oppressed orders by imitating their tattoos and way of dress, imitation being the highest form of empathy available to egotists, they now express the same desire by making Wokeness the touchstone of their morality. They think they are rebelling when, of course, they are conforming.
Thanks for posting this and many others. Been catching up on his recent columns!
Hi, Matt. Thanks for the comment. As I have stated before, as long as Theodore Dalrymple keeps writing we will keep posting. Cheers.
I’d also like to thank you, David, for continuing to maintain this valuable site.
I recently received Dalrymple’s most recent book, “Embargo and other stories”, and was touched to find it dedicated to Clinton Conatser. I think this was mentioned in a previous post, but I cannot be certain.
At any rate, I recommend the book without reservation. Like “Grief”, it’s a collection of short stories, which touch on the autobiographical. I wonder if there might not be a way to contact Dr. Dalrymple, to inquire just to what degree these are autobiographical. I’m thinking in particular about the story “Domination” (included in “Grief”, which seems to be a thinly-veiled biography of his father. In that particular case, I would not be surprised to learn that every word was true. Did anyone else get that impression?
Hi Jonathan. Great to hear from you! I think the vast majority of Embargo is autobiographical. I think the encounter with the former Nazi in Haiti and some of the details of the other stories are fictional, but most I think is not. I actually haven’t read Grief, and I should. I will pay particular attention to “Domination”, but yes, just from that name, it sounds like it might be about his father.
He has another book of short stories already written, and we are working on a new book that should be out in a few weeks: Around the World in the Cinemas of Paris, which includes reflections on 33 international films he saw in Parisian cinemas. I absolutely love it and look forward to publishing it. We will post something on the website when it is available.